The wedding of Harry and Meghan was watched by billions, and for good reason. The Prince and Duchess are genuinely in love – in stark contrast to the royal marriage of Harry’s parents 37 years ago, where it became quickly apparent that Diana’s love for Charles was a one-way street.

As the world watched the pomp and circumstance, we were reminded of the great English traditions that have survived over the centuries and the rich history of a people who changed the world in incalculable ways. Sure, England’s past isn’t perfect, and mistakes were made – as is the case with every nation’s past. But except for Ireland, the British left most places they occupied better off than when they found them.

It was awe-inspiring to see tens of thousands of Brits lining the streets, some of whom had camped out for days, proudly waving the Union Jack. That dedication wasn’t borne from simply wanting to see a part of history, but something much more profound. The British people – all of them, from white Anglo-Saxons to Indians to blacks – were unified in celebrating their British identity. Coming together to show the world that fairy-tale weddings really do exist, the Brits renewed their belief in themselves. They remembered their glorious past, and reignited optimism for their nation as it forges ahead in the face of unprecedented challenges. That’s called nationalism – not xenophobia – and it’s not a “dirty” word. In fact, just the opposite – nationalism is the single-most important element that builds cohesion in a multicultural society.

Maybe it took a royal wedding to jumpstart Great Britain, but the Brits are once again exuding the same pioneering spirit that once earned them the distinction of being the only people in history to say the sun never set on their Empire.

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Some thoughts on the royal wedding:

1) There are at least 34 monarchies in the world today, but the crown is the only one that commands our attention. It is proof that America’s “special relationship” with Britain extends far beyond political and military alliances. And it was fantastic to see so many American flags being waved by Britons to honor Duchess Markle’s country. Here’s hoping our relationship remains as strong as it is today.

2) The life of a royal is thought of as exotic and glamorous – and it is. But it is also rife with pitfalls. Not only is life extremely structured and privacy virtually nonexistent, but many past royals were forced to marry for the crown rather than love. And that is why three of Queen Elizabeth’s four children ended up divorced. Kudos to William and Harry for imbuing the royal family with true love.

3) Pity to those Americans who so cavalierly shrug off the royal weddings with a “why should I care?” attitude. Yes, we defeated them in war. Yes, we rejected a monarchy for ourselves. And yes, our system of representative government is arguably the best in history. But so what? This isn’t a contest about comparative governments or win-loss war records (though we fought alongside the Brits much more than against them). All are completely irrelevant to the royal family and the pride that it inspires.

There are so many incredible aspects to England’s royal family that the real question is, “How can one NOT be enthralled?” There is its complicated history; the pomposity of its celebrations; traditions with stricter protocols than nuclear launch codes; bloodlines and heraldry of mindboggling complexities; grandiose castles; juicy scandals; extreme generosity; and yes, sadly, tragedies. But above all, who, child and adult alike, hasn’t dreamed of being king or queen? And what “regular” girl doesn’t fantasize about marrying a prince and riding off into the sunset, while her subjects shower her with unbridled love? It’s no coincidence that the most iconic feature of Disney is its towering fairy tale castle.

The fact that such a fairy tale just occurred (and for an American, no less) breathed new life into that most important lesson for our children: “Anything is possible.”

As an actress, Meghan Markle pretended to be other people. But now, in real life, she is living the ultimate dream – not just England’s newest princess, but the world’s.

4) Lastly, it is truly regrettable that in today’s hyper-partisan society, not even a wedding can be off-limits to divisive politicization.

Most saw the wedding for what it was: Love. But others hijacked that goodwill by injecting race where it wasn’t warranted.

Rev. Renee McKenzie, vicar of an Episcopal church in Philadelphia, stated that Markle being biracial is like “taking a hammer into the basement of the master and slowly destroying the house brick by brick,” adding that “it really was a black service … (Meghan Markle was) claiming her blackness.”

What garbage. Last we checked, Ms. Markle was there to get married, not make a political statement about her “black side” trying to bring down the house of the very person she is marrying.

A biracial American divorcee marrying into the royal family speaks volumes by itself, and nothing else needs to be said. But some couldn’t leave that love story unblemished. Their vitriolic rhetoric detracted from the day, angering people who simply wanted to rejoice in something special without having it marred by politics.

Markle attended Catholic school, so were Catholics elated at the prospect of bringing down the Church of England “brick by brick,” since one of their own is now “on the inside?” Of course not. So why are we not admonishing those who make insulting claims because a woman with black ethnicity is now Duchess of Sussex? Meghan Markle married for love – nothing else. People using her to further their radical agendas need to get a life.

The rest of the race-baiting came from a small cadre of America’s Left, in reference to black American Bishop Michael Curry’s sermon. Curry’s theme of the “power of love” referenced how love can overcome poverty, war and slavery, and included inspirational quotes from the Bible and Martin Luther King Jr.

Nothing wrong with that, especially given how the royals have done more to shed light on such problems than perhaps anyone else in the world.

Yet some loudmouths on social media gushed that Curry’s words made the royals – who some referred to as “white colonizers” and “white slavers” – awkwardly squirm in their seats.

Wrong. The reason they squirmed was because Curry droned on entirely too long – almost 15 minutes – while jumping all over the place in his rambling speech. He, like so many others, forgot the cardinal rules that A) you have to know your audience (the English are not accustomed to that preaching style), and B) you have seven minutes – max – to get your point across. After that, you lose whatever “takeaways” you had earned, as everyone yawns, looks at their watches, and yes – squirms. And that’s too bad, because for the first several minutes, Curry hit it out of the ballpark.

And, no surprise here, the extremists also got their history wrong. While England did at one point permit slavery, it became, far and away, one of the foremost countries opposed to it. And as influential as King was in advocating civil rights, he could never have done it without the steadfast support of many other races – including whites, many of English ancestry.

Just as a newly married couple leaves past relationships at the altar, so too should the “critics” jettison their irrational obsession with past events. Their actions undermine the tremendous progress made on issues such as racial equality, and hinder people from looking to the future with unfettered optimism.

With Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan helping to forge a path of hope, the British lion is roaring once again. That’s a good thing for Europe, the world, and most of all, Britannia herself. Long live the queen!

Chris Freind is an independent columnist and commentator. He can be reached at CF@FFZMedia.com.